Discuss.
He was a fine player, no doubting that and was excellent for France. while he won a Champions League at Madrid they really did flatter to deceive during his time there.
Three League titles and a Champions League is hardly a huge haul at club level given the teams that Juventus and Real had during his 10 years or so between the both.
A great player for France no doubt, his club record leaves it open to debate though. Ronaldinho made a far bigger impact in Spain over roughly the same time period IMHO
Nedved was a far superior player for Juventus too. Nedved would be revered by Juventus fans in ways Zidane could not imagine.
There were a few people on here a couple of years ago who were up in arms when i suggested that Nedved was a better player than Paul Scholes. EPL fans are fair queer hawks all the same.
Ronaldinho has been very unfortunate in the fact that Barca became even successful after he left with the likes of Messi, Xavi and Iniesta being central to that and they will go down as even bigger greats in Barca folklore. The latter two had struggled with injuries during Ronaldinho’s time there, especially in the Champions League winning season. He was magical there for 3 or 4 seasons before Rijkaards last disasterous season and held in very high regards by the Barca fans, it was eclipsed by the team of the past few years though and somewhat deminished his legacy - along with his own relatively poor form at AC, which is a shame
Ronaldinho was pure entertainment, a man of unmitigated brilliance. He was a great and I agree that he was a far better player than Zidane. Nedved was a better player than Zidane, so was Veron and Totti was the greatest of them all.
Nedved dragged that Juve side to a Champions League final and they would have won it only for he was suspended
what a nonsensical point. why not compare them over their careers?
at 34, zidane led France pretty much single-handedly to a world cup final. where will ronaldinho be at 34? he gave up playing properly years ago.
zizou was a maestro. to be fair international football was where he was at his best and the lack of goals at club level is surprising when you look at the stats. Wouldnt be in the same class as Messi or Ronaldo but still an all time great.
was never impressed with him in Serie A
No totti,nedved or veron
how is it nonsensical? both players careers in Spain overlapped. Zidane was a relative disappointment at Madrid despite being in a team of Galcticous while Ronaldinho was a revelation and was the driving force behind Barca crushing Madrd for a number of years. I already made the point that Zidane was a great player for France and this is where his legacy as one of the all time greats has come from. Don’t think Ronaldinho will be considered an all time great but he made more impact in La Liga which for some reason you think is nonsensical
veron couldnt even hack the EPL mate. the walkers leprechaun was superior to him
Veron was too good for the EPL.
he couldnt hack the head tennis and kick and rush of the EPL mate- thats a credit to him
because it could be as easy said that zidane was far superior in italy for example. zidane was coming towards the end of his career then and it isnt a relevant comparison against ronaldinho who was younger and at his peak at the same time.
both of them won a champions league each in spain. ronaldinho won one more league title in spain than zidane. zidane as with others in the madrid side suffered by being part of a harlem globetrotters set up. barcelona were a proper team and built around ronaldinho. ronaldinho was also pretty much chased out of barca for a finish. he was a magical player in his own right but only for about 3 or 4 years. not sure how zidane would be classed as a relative disappointment in madrid. he was an icon there until he retired.
:o :o
He is held in high regard by the fans because he was a quality footballer why else do you think?, but for to be the worlds most expensive player and play for what were the worlds biggest side littered with superstars one league title and one champions league in six or so season was a disappointing return for a team that when on form were excellent.
To reiterate my initial point Zidane was a fine footballer and is regarded as one of the all time greats due to his heroic performances for France but in term of trophies at club level 3 league titles and one Champions League title over a decade while at Juve and Real and calibre of players around him at both has to be classed as an under achievement.
Chewy Louie is bang on the money with everything he has said here.
you do realise football is a team game yeah? if medals are your sole barometer of his class as a player it is surprising you are using the example of ronaldinho as someone who made a far bigger impact in spain. seeing as he won only 2 league titles in 5 years as opposed to zidane’s one.
You seem to think that Barca were at the same point when Ronaldinho joined as Real were when Zidane joined. Barca were a rabble and finished 6th the year before Ronaldinho joined and hadn’t won the league in four years, when Zidane joined Real Madrid they were reigning Champions and were European Champions the year previous. Zidane joined a far better far more settled side, Rolandinho was the catalyst for Barca rising from the ashes under Rijkaard and overtaking Real Madrid and what was a fine Valencia side at the time.
[quote=“chewy louie, post: 730922”]
You seem to think that Barca were at the same point when Ronaldinho joined as Real were when Zidane joined. Barca were a rabble and finished 6th the year before Ronaldinho joined and hadn’t won the league in four years, when Zidane joined Real Madrid they were reigning Champions and were European Champions the year previous. Zidane joined a far better far more settled side, Rolandinho was the catalyst for Barca rising from the ashes under Rijkaard and overtaking Real Madrid and what was a fine Valencia side at the time.[/quote]
Aren’t you paying attention Chewy? KIB man has already stated that comparing their time in Spain is an unfair argument.
For me, Zidane is the greatest player I have ever seen. Leaving aside medals etc, watching him play was a sight to behold. The effortless grace on the ball, the ability to always pick the right ball, the range of skill that he possessed. He was just a joy to watch.
Ronaldinho was also a terrific player whose impact on Barcelona is often overlooked. He was the main reason for the shift in dominance in Spain from Real to Barca.
I despise the aura that has been created around Zidane, there were many better footballers than him. Figo and Ronaldo were easily better footballers than him when at Real - as were the likes of Nedved, Veron, Totti, Rui Costa, Seedorf and others in the golden Serie A era.
Selling Zidane and using that money to buy Nedved was the best decision Juve ever made.